Soulmates Serenity Sniffing @ Halli Berri
Live in the moment, be uninhibited, be spirited, be free, you will love to experience the nature at its beautiful best. I (Jackie) a Boxer LIVE and LIVE FREE. Join me on my adventures at my estate.
Jackie
My day begins with the aromatic freshness of coffee beans growing on our Kambihalli Estate. Our home in the forest is home to many migratory birds, singing their merry little tunes and flying with exultation, the life on a plantation is truly phenomenal! Surrounded by wide open spaces and the peaceful sounds of nature, my nine years of existence on our estate has been spent with many species including horses, chickens, cows, cats and naturally occurring fauna like monkeys (those rascals!), rabbits and pigs. The occasional leopard and panther sightings and the ever mesmerizing peacocks can be heard in the distance.
Amidst the lush green fields and the vast expanse of the coffee plantation I sit beside my family of four women—the Kariappa girls: Nalima, Maanavi, Anusha and Tejini—my soulmates.
My home – an adventure haven
The estate I live on is situated on the Baba Budangiri Hills, the highest range in Karnataka. Venturing into the woods is always a thrilling experience here! Blessed with tall silver oak trees, panoramic green foliage, enchanting valleys and mountain streams, these hills rejuvenate the eyes and soul. Sniffing my way back home from the woods feels like a new, unusual and exciting experience each time.
Life on our estate is quite an adventure! Often when we have guests at our Halli Berri homestay, and it so happens that some of them love my kind, we venture out on some of the most magnificent trails on the plantations. Whether we follow the stream or climb a gentle slope, we explore the small yet intense lives being lived underneath the green covers of our forest home; tiny ants and worms, beetles, larvae or spiders. I watch, amused at the awestruck faces of my human friends as they explore these unknown taverns, and wonder what their lives must be like, if these mundane facets are phenomena to them.
My friend Mika and My gang
Apart from all, my life on the plantation would be incomplete without my best friend and companion, a white Lab called Mika, who was the alpha female amongst the six of us who grew up together. Back in the day when Nalima’s husband was alive and I just arrived at Halli Berri as a little puppy, Mika taught me everything I know today and made her ways mine. For those of you who know the Boxer breed, we are quite particular in our ways and like to keep our paws clean! However, growing up with this best friend I came to like water and today I am the first to jump into any stream and drench myself in the joy of nature, a rare sight but yes this is true!
Just a brief on all the other canines that make my family complete, Jimmy and Rania are
our Doberman watchdogs who keep guard over our plantations so that we can sleep sound at night. Since they’re still learning on the job and Mika has passed on her alpha female crown to me I am always alert and shout out with the first bark so that the little ones can take over and make the watchman aware if need be.
Tia is another white Lab completely oversized as she eats everybody’s food including the cats’; being a lab she doesn’t know
Tia Maria
when to stop eating! Hence, even at nine years of age I am much faster, leaner and more in shape. She is my best friend Mika’s daughter who I now take cares of, but as she becomes older she’s getting more stubborn in her ways. Though I still share my own bones with her she never does the same.
My delights
The weather at the estate is ideal for my companions and me. From warm summers, torrential rainfall to chilly winters – a perfect time to snuggle in with my family that tucks me into my little flannel blankets and when they’re fast asleep to jump under the sheets to sleep alongside them to feel the warmth and to enjoy the cold winter nights.
The climate here fluctuates every two months! At times, such oscillating weather makes me feel unwell but with Nalima, a cure for every ailment is available at the estate.
My most memorable moment
Of course, the most memorable and beautiful moment of my life on the estate was the day I become a mother to 13 lovely puppies. It is said that a dog should receive early training and should be taught early socialisation skills; however, in my case such training was never imposed, leading to an independent existence not constrained by any kind of convention. My bond with my family grows stronger each day.
(With inputs from the Team Estrada (a sports, fashion and lifestyle PR agency) for Halli Berri – a coffee estate and a Heart & Soul rejuvenating homestay nestled in the hills of Chikkamagaluru in the Western Ghats. Halli Berri ARABICA coffee is sprinkled with love for coffee admirers).
Pic courtesy: Nimish Jain Photography